SBL Round 22 (Regular Season): Al Nassr lose to Ittihad in the game between Top 4 teams

There will be only one (last) round of the Regular Season in SBL. Here is the last round review presented by Job Market.

The game between Top Four teams took place in Jeddah. Second ranked host Ittihad (18-3) smashed 3rd ranked Al Nassr (16-5) 90-66. Ittihad dominated down low during the game scoring 50 of its points in the paint compared to Al Nassr's 24. They outrebounded Al Nassr 47-33 including a 40-23 advantage in defensive rebounds. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Ittihad made 7 blocks. Americans were the main players on the court. James Justice (178-1989, college: UT Southern) had a double-double by scoring 19 points, 9 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the charge for the winners and power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) chipped in 21 points and 10 rebounds during the contest. Ittihad's coach Mohamed Kardani felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the losing side guard PJ Hardy (185-1998, college: Louisiana) responded with 31 points and 6 assists. Ittihad keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Al Hilal. Al Nassr at the other side keeps the third place with five games lost. They share the position with Al Ahli. Ittihad's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Jeddah to the arena Al Ahli.
The game between Top Four teams took place in Jeddah. 3rd ranked host Al Ahli (16-5) lost to second ranked Al Hilal (18-3) 98-86. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Al Ahli. American guard Antwan Scott (185-1992, college: Colorado St.) notched a double-double by scoring 23 points and 14 assists to lead the effort and Tre McCallum supported him with 25 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Even 20 points and 4 assists by the former international Ali Shubayli (190-1996) did not help to save the game for Al Ahli. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Hilal have an impressive ten-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with Ittihad. Defending champion Al Ahli keeps the third place with five games lost. They share the position with Al Nassr. Al Hilal's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Riyadh Al Nassr.
Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-21) is still winless. This time they could not use their home court advantage losing their 21th consecutive match to sixth ranked Al Fateh (11-10) 103-77 on Monday evening. Antonio Campbell fired 33 points (!!!), 8 rebounds and 5 assists for the winners. Corey Sanders produced 30 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists for lost side. Al Fateh maintains sixth position with 11-10 record. Loser Al Taawoun still closes the standings. Al Fateh will meet at home Al Salam (#8) in the next round. Al Taawoun will play against Deba (#11) and hopes to get finally their first victory.

There were no shocking results in the other games in round 22: Ohod lost to Al Khaleej on the opponent's court 76-79. Deba managed to outperform Al Salam in a home game 112-97. Al Wehda recorded a loss to Al Safa on the road 101-88.
The most impressive stats of the last round was 25 points and 8 rebounds by Dikembe Dixson of Al Safa.



Ittihad - Al Nassr 90-66

The game between Top Four teams took place in Jeddah. Second ranked host Ittihad (18-3) smashed 3rd ranked Al Nassr (16-5) 90-66. Ittihad dominated down low during the game scoring 50 of its points in the paint compared to Al Nassr's 24. They outrebounded Al Nassr 47-33 including a 40-23 advantage in defensive rebounds. Great defensive blocking was one of the keys in this match when Ittihad made 7 blocks. Americans were the main players on the court. James Justice (178-1989, college: UT Southern) had a double-double by scoring 19 points, 9 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the charge for the winners and power forward Latavious Williams (203-1989) chipped in 21 points and 10 rebounds during the contest. Ittihad's coach Mohamed Kardani felt very confident that he used 11 players which allowed the starters a little rest for the next games. At the losing side guard PJ Hardy (185-1998, college: Louisiana) responded with 31 points and 6 assists and Carlton Bragg Jr (208-1995, college: N.Mexico) produced a double-double by scoring 17 points and 18 rebounds. Ittihad keeps a position of league leader, which they share with Al Hilal. Al Nassr at the other side keeps the third place with five games lost. They share the position with Al Ahli. Ittihad's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will travel locally in Jeddah to the arena Al Ahli.
Top scorers:
Ittihad: L.Williams 21+10reb+3ast, J.Justice 19+9reb+10ast, M.Almarwani 19+4reb+1ast, M.AlMarwani 8+18reb+3ast, F.Abdulrahman 7+3reb+2ast, A.Mustafa 7+1ast
Al Nassr: P.Hardy 31+1reb+6ast, C.Bragg Jr. 17+18reb, A.Ayoub 9+8reb+2ast, C.Russell 4+1reb+2ast, A.Jallas Nasser 3+4reb+2ast, F.Fahad 2+2ast

Al Khaleej - Ohod 79-76

There was an upset when higher ranked Ohod (13-8) was edged on the road by ninth ranked Al Khaleej (7-14) 79-76 on Monday. American point guard Derek StHilaire (183-1998, college: New Orleans) fired 28 points and 6 rebounds for the winners. Congolese-French forward Nobel Boungou-Colo (202-1988) chipped in 26 points. South Sudanese-Australian forward Deng Deng (203-1992, college: Baylor) produced a double-double by scoring 27 points, 14 rebounds and 6 assists and Osama Al-Zahrani added 17 points and 10 rebounds respectively for lost side. Newly promoted Al Khaleej maintains ninth position with 7-14 record, which they share with Al Safa. Loser Ohod keeps the fifth place with eight games lost. Al Khaleej will meet at home Al Safa (#10) in the next round. Ohod will play against Al Wehda (#7) and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Khaleej: D.St.Hilaire 28+6reb+3ast, N.Boungou-Colo 26+3reb+3ast, J.Farr 11+5reb, M.Almutairi 5+4reb+1ast, A.Al-Darweesh 5+3reb+2ast, A.Mohammed 3+4reb+1ast
Ohod: D.Deng 27+14reb+6ast, F.Abdulrahman 17+3reb, A.Osama 17+10reb+3ast, M.Alhawsawi 8+10reb, A.Mohammad 5+7reb+7ast, A.Obaidi 2+1reb

Al Taawoun - Al Fateh 77-103

Bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (0-21) is still winless. This time they could not use their home court advantage losing their 21th consecutive match to sixth ranked Al Fateh (11-10) 103-77 on Monday evening. Al Fateh looked well-organized offensively handing out 27 assists comparing to just 12 passes made by Al Taawoun's players. American forward Antonio Campbell (206-1994, college: Ohio) fired 33 points (!!!), 8 rebounds and 5 assists for the winners. The other American import forward Anthony Fairley (203-1999, college: Miles) chipped in a double-double by scoring 25 points and 10 rebounds. Four Al Fateh players scored in double figures. American forward Corey Sanders (188-1997, college: Rutgers) produced 30 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists and Bosnian center Markus Loncar (213-1996) added 14 points and 8 rebounds respectively for lost side. Al Fateh maintains sixth position with 11-10 record. Loser Al Taawoun still closes the standings. Al Fateh will meet at home Al Salam (#8) in the next round. Al Taawoun will play against Deba (#11) and hopes to get finally their first victory.
Top scorers:
Al Fateh: A.Campbell 33+8reb+5ast, A.Fairley 25+10reb+3ast, A.Saad 14+3reb+1ast, A.Ali 10+1reb+3ast, M.Al-Saquer 8+6reb+13ast, A.Hesham 8+1reb
Al Taawoun: C.Sanders 30+5reb+6ast, M.Loncar 14+8reb+1ast, A.Omar 11+4reb+1ast, A.Alwaleed 7+5reb, K.Mahmoud 7+2reb+2ast, D.Gilmore 5

Deba - Al Salam 112-97

There was a small surprise in Tabuk where eleventh ranked Deba (3-18) defeated 8th ranked Al Salam (8-13) 112-97 on Monday. Deba outrebounded Al Salam 34-22 including 23 on the defensive glass. American-Jamaican guard Josh Nicholas (190-1998, college: ULM) fired 40 points (!!!) and 6 rebounds for the winners. Guyanese-American forward Kevin Mickle (201-1993, college: Ohio) chipped in a double-double by scoring 31 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals. Four Deba players scored in double figures. Fawaz Ekhwan produced 23 points and 7 rebounds and Bader Alsulimani added 26 points respectively for lost side. Deba maintains eleventh position with 3-18 record. Loser Al Salam keeps the eighth place with 13 games lost. Deba will meet bottom-ranked Al Taawoun (#12) in the next round. Al Salam will play against Al Fateh (#6) in Al Hasa and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Deba: J.Nicholas 40+6reb+3ast, K.Mickle 31+10reb+5ast, I.Suhail 17+9reb+1ast, A.Abdullah 15+2reb+4ast, M.Mohammed 9+6reb+6ast, A.Saud 0
Al Salam: A.Bader 26+3reb+2ast, E.Fawaz 23+7reb+2ast, A.Khalid 20+7reb+4ast, A.Osama 9+2ast, A.Nimer Hussain 6+1reb+3ast, Y.Fallatah 3+4reb+6ast

Al Ahli - Al Hilal 86-98

The game between Top Four teams took place in Jeddah. 3rd ranked host Al Ahli (16-5) lost to second ranked Al Hilal (18-3) 98-86. It ended at the same time the two-game winning streak of Al Ahli. Al Hilal players were unselfish on offense dishing 28 assists. American guard Antwan Scott (185-1992, college: Colorado St.) notched a double-double by scoring 23 points and 14 assists to lead the effort and the other American import forward Tre McCallum (201-1995, college: DePaul, agency: MSG) supported him with 25 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Even 20 points and 4 assists by the former international Ali Shubayli (190-1996) did not help to save the game for Al Ahli. American forward Deandre Liggins (198-1988, college: Kentucky) added 12 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists for lost side. Five Al Hilal and four Al Ahli players scored in double figures. Al Ahli's coach Ali Alsanhani rotated eleven players in this game, but that didn't help. Al Hilal have an impressive ten-game winning streak. They keep a position of league leader, which they share with Ittihad. Defending champion Al Ahli keeps the third place with five games lost. They share the position with Al Nassr. Al Hilal's supporters look forward to an exciting derby game next round, where their team will face at home their local rival from Riyadh Al Nassr.
Top scorers:
Al Hilal: T.McCallum 25+9reb+4ast, A.Scott 23+4reb+14ast, N.Alabsi 19+3reb+1ast, O.Albargawi 15+5reb+4ast, A.Mohammed 13+12reb+5ast, A.Abdelmalek 3
Al Ahli: A.Shubayli 20+4reb+4ast, B.Ayman 14+2reb+4ast, D.Liggins 12+9reb+5ast, H.Thompson 10+6reb+8ast, I.Aska 9+4reb+1ast, K.Mohammed 8+1reb

Al Safa - Al Wehda 101-88

There was a minor upset in Safwa where 7th ranked Al Wehda (9-12) was defeated by tenth ranked Al Safa (7-14) 101-88 on Monday. American forward Dikembe Dixson (201-1996, college: UIC) fired 25 points and 8 rebounds for the winners. The other American import guard Dallas Morgan (185, college: CMU) chipped in 25 points. Al Safa's coach Vanja Gusa used a ten-player rotation and allowed the starting five to rest. American forward Muhammed Ahmed (203, college: Bridgeport) produced 26 points and 8 rebounds and international center Thamer Mohammed (205-1997) added 14 points and 8 rebounds respectively for lost side. Both teams had four players each who scored in double figures. Al Safa moved-up to ninth place, which they share with Al Khaleej. Al Wehda lost fourth consecutive game. They keep the seventh position with 12 games lost. Al Safa will meet Al Khaleej (#9) in the next round. Al Wehda will play against Ohod in Medina and it may be a tough game between close rivals.
Top scorers:
Al Safa: D.Dixson 25+8reb+2ast, D.Morgan 25+4reb+3ast, J.Friday 18+7reb+2ast, A.Ali 12+4reb+2ast, A.Hassan 8+6reb+3ast, S.Rashad 5+7reb+1ast
Al Wehda: M.Ahmed 26+8reb+3ast, M.Thamer 14+8reb, A.Ayob 12+3reb, A.Muhannad 11+3reb, A.Mohammed 8+2reb+1ast, H.Meshal 6+5reb+2ast